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US safety agency threatens air bag maker with legal action

U.S. safety regulators sent a letter Wednesday, threatening fines and legal action against Takata Corp. for failing to admit that its driver’s-side air bag inflators are defective and should be recalled nationwide.(Photo: AP)

DETROIT – A dispute between U.S. safety regulators and air bag maker Takata Corp. escalated Wednesday when the government threatened fines and legal action if the company fails to admit that driver’s side air bag inflators are defective and agrees to a nationwide recall.

In a letter to Takata’s Washington office, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration gave the Japanese company until Tuesday to file paperwork declaring a defect and agree to expand the recall from high-humidity states to the full nation.

The company’s air bags have been blamed for at least five deaths and multiple injuries worldwide. They can inflate with too much force, blowing apart a metal canister and sending shrapnel into drivers and passengers.

The letter is the first step in a legal process to compel a recall. To do so, the agency must make a finding that there’s a safety defect, hold a public hearing and then it can go to court. It can also fine the company up to $7,000 per vehicle with defective inflators, and the NHTSA says there are millions on the road today.

“Be assured that we will use all of our authority and resources to ensure that America’s drivers and passengers are safe,” Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said in a statement.

Takata has maintained that the air bag problems are caused by prolonged exposure to airborne moisture, and that there’s no need for a national recall. Boundaries of the recall zone vary by manufacturer, but generally it covers Gulf Coast states, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and some U.S. territories.

A company spokesman said Wednesday that he was working on a response to the government letter.

About 8 million vehicles from 10 manufacturers have been recalled in the U.S., and nearly 14 million worldwide. The vehicles have Takata driver’s side or passenger side air bags, or both. So far the government is not seeking a national recall of passenger side air bags.

Lawmakers have said there are 100 million cars and trucks in use worldwide with Takata air bags, and more than 30 million in the U.S.